1Anthony MussoProfessor PetersonExpository Writing 101:DP Essay 2: Rough Draft14 February 2012Do you fit in?Masculinity is the properties characteristic of the male sex. Characteristics include strength, toughness, brutality and many more. All of which are the characteristics of the boys who attended The Citadel in hopes of leaving the school as men. Susan Faludi, author of The Naked Citadel, writes about the problems within the prestigious school, the major problem, being sexism. The Citadel’s problem can be almost clearly supported by Malcom Gladwell’s Power of Context argument from his book the Tipping Point. The militaristic environment at the Citadel changes each cadet’s character into an extreme emotionally ruined version of who they once were. These changes turn into violence in the extreme.Perception is the key to many disagreements within society. This holds true in the situation that affects The Citadel. When a girl, Shannon Faulkner, applies to be the first female admitted to the Cadet Corps. She attempts to mess with the system by leaving out her gender. The perception at the Citadel is that women would not be a good fit in the school. Tradition has a major part with this. It is apparent that Shannon’s entrance to the Citadel has proven to become a threat to the Citadel community since it is an all-male institution, intended to train real men. The Citadel has always been an all boy school as “except of course, they weren’t really boys at all. These were college men” (Faludi 78). Who’s to say however that they are in fact men? What defines a man? Within the society a man is expected to think, act and live in a masculine manner. Showing emotions or

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Musso 2sensitivity is considered taboo among the males. In the Citadel a man can act in a manner in which the threat of breaking the public norms is not eminent. The way of life in the Citadel made it almost impossible to live for a woman. Society as a whole saw the Citadel as an established all male school and they were determined to keep it that way. However, this perception is based on what is seen from an outside perspective. Gladwell defines this aspect of perception of character as the FAE, Fundamental Attribution Error.

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